Source: Quangle
I am excited to get up early every morning. I see God’s glory reflected in the radiance of the sunrise with its rosy pinks, delicate yellows and golds, and soft blues. Often drinking a hot drink of tea or coffee, I rejoice in the Lord and his goodness. In fact, I am overwhelmed with love and gratitude when I see the true beauty of nature. I think of the Lord creating all the wonderful things he did in Genesis.
Every day is a chance to begin again. Each day is a wonderful new beginning. Every morning, I make the conscious choice to leave behind any negativity from yesterday. I let go of it all. I think only of the ways in which the Lord blessed me with his goodness. I think of King David in all his wisdom: “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).
I think also of these beautiful lines from the Song of Zechariah: “By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:78-9). At this point in the Gospel of Luke, Zechariah’s son, John the Baptist, was just born. Zechariah just regained the ability to speak after months of silence. He ultimately speaks of the coming of Jesus Christ in this prophecy. I have always found these beautiful words of Zechariah to be words of hope.
Have you ever heard the saying: “When you make plans God laughs”? It is from an Old Yiddish proverb: “Man Tracht, Un Gott Lacht,” which literally translates to “Man plans and God laughs.” It is natural for people to make plans. It is part of life. The truth is that we have plans and goals but God can do it better. I always find things I have fussed about turn out better than I have imagined. A big part of this involves placing my trust in the Lord. He knows what he is doing.
Words I say throughout the day are: “Your will be done, Lord.” These are words we utter in the Our Father prayer: “Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” They are words from when Jesus suffered in the garden of Gethsemane at the Mount of Olives. He says: “O my father, if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it, your will be done” (Matthew 26:42). These are powerful words that we can speak as we remember our reliance upon the Lord.
Spend Time with the Lord
Source: NoName_13
How often do we leave our homes in a hurry? Do we set aside time to spend with the Lord? Do we allow ourselves to have a quiet moment before running off to start a busy day? As believers, it is important to start our day with the Lord. We may have time constraints or young ones to take care of.
I am not talking about creating some elaborate routine. If you can spend even five minutes in quiet with the Lord, it can go a long way to giving you peace throughout the day.
This is not only time to spend in prayer, reading scripture, or quietly contemplating the goodness of the Lord, it is time for you to recharge your batteries. Didn’t Jesus spend time alone in prayer? He would often leave the apostles to have some quiet time.
Everyone’s spending time with the Lord is different. For you it can be a few moments of silence and in contemplation. For others it can be uttering prayers that bring them closer to the Lord. Others still could be counting their blessings and expressing gratitude. There is no right or wrong way of doing this. The most important thing is being able to connect with your Creator and to know that he is there.
